New Meridian Project for My Mom

[GregLWB]

Hi guys,

I'm going to need to pick all of your brains.:1eye: My mom and step-dad are coming for my youngest daughters graduation this weekend and my mom called to ask me how long it would take to build a recumbent for her. She is in her late 60's but is really active, can still balance a bike just fine but wants something more comfortable.

So here's the deal. I have one week to build a Meridian so that when they drive back to Southern Utah they can take the completed bike with them. I have been looking through the build threads trying to glean as much as I can from them but there are a lot of threads and a lot of info to sort through in such a short time.:rolleyes4:

I need your input on the best tweaks and ways of overcoming obstacles on this frame from your experiences (ie: something that you wish you had welded on, kickstand, how to shorten the length, etc.) as I won't have as much time to sit and think about the next step as I did on my other builds.

In case you're wondering why this build and not another for her? I don't think I can build a Delta Runner in a week as I haven't tried to build the hubs yet. Also I think it will be lighter than the Tourmaster and where she lives there are a lot of hills and this will be a run around town bike, not a commuter. She also will eventually be putting an electric hub motor on the bike.

And as for doing this in a week, well I will be taking vacation time off next week and when your mother asks you to build her a bike..... well, you gotta do it!:heart:

Greg

[Danner]

Gregger, I won't be much help, but it will be great to see a Meridian come together at breakneck speed! Take some photos even if you don't have time to post them until you're finished!
Danner

[Danner]

Greg, How about just doing another TourMaster for her? You did it pretty fast, and already know its idiosyncrasies.

[GregLWB]

Thanks Danner - I think like most of you guys she wants something a little more sporty looking and with all the hills around her area I need to keep the weight down too.

Also, I haven't built a Meridian yet! Yeah, that's the ticket..... I need to build one of each of Brad's designs!:jester::jester: Sorry, got carried away, I'm okay now.:rolleyes4:

One thing though.... are you ready for it...... this one won't be BLUE!:jester:

Greg

[trikeman]

Building the frame of the Meridian should be relatively trivial, except perhaps for getting that rear chain stays lined up and welded on. I think a simple jig such as several members have used would here there. What takes the longest time on these bikes for me is thinking and dreaming about all the parts, and then obtaining them. Putting all the little finishing touches on also takes time. Then there is paint and waiting for it to dry.

I believe that you IF you had all the parts on hand, you could build the Meridian in a weekend, except for the paint job. Getting all the parts would be my first priority.

[GregLWB]

I believe that you IF you had all the parts on hand, you could build the Meridian in a weekend, except for the paint job. Getting all the parts would be my first priority.

Got all the parts including the steel and my mom is bringing a good donor bike that will be retired and reborn as a Zombie.:jester:

Greg

[Danner]

Well now, that's more like it. What are you doing sitting in front of the computer? :sunny:

[trikeman]

If you have a spare 26" fork, it wouldn't hurt to start the frame before she gets there.

[GregLWB]

If you have a spare 26" fork, it wouldn't hurt to start the frame before she gets there.

I was thinking about that and I do have a spare 26" fork. I don't get paid until Friday so I will have to download the plan and start it Friday morning.

Greg

[TheKid]

When I did mine, I left the fork attached to the steerer tube, spread the forks, placed a rear hub in the dropouts, and tack welded a small bar across the forks, about 3" from the steerer tube. Then I cut the forks from the tube, which left them in perfect alignment to clamp to the main boom. I ground the forks so they fit the boom, then cut some 2x4's to hold the boom at the right height. I used 2 pieces of angle iron to simulate the height of the axle. 3/8" holes were drilled and cut so they resembled droputs, and a piece of flat bar was welded near the bottom the same width as the fork dropouts. Once it was clamped to the boom, I tack welded it in place, removed the small spacer bar, then installed the wheel to get the correct alignment. Some more tack welds alternating one side to the other kept it in line until it was solid enough to add the seat stays, remove the wheel and finish welding. I later cut the front dropouts from the fork and welded in the rear dropouts, again, using a hub for alignment. It sounds like a lot of work, but it only took 2-3 hours to make the jigs and everything. And believe me, I'm a sloooow worker.

[GregLWB]

It sounds like a lot of work, but it only took 2-3 hours to make the jigs and everything. And believe me, I'm a sloooow worker.

Thanks Kid - I think I understand.:) Is there a link to a thread that has a picture of your process by chance?

Greg

[TheKid]

No. I never took pics of the build. I did leave a couple of things out. When I did the seat stays, I slid the dropouts over the axle and marked where the stays had to be cut at the seat post. I left the little bar for the fender mount in place to keep the spacing, so the stays were in essence, one piece. Then I tack welded them to the seat post, and marked where the front dropouts had to be cut off. In the center between the dropouts and the rear of the main frame, I tack welded 1/8" thick rod to hold them in place. Then I removed the wheel and replaced it with the hub. It was real easy to maneuver everything in place. Just to make sure, I tack welded the chain stays to the dropouts and put the wheel back. Everything was in line, but I may have just gotten lucky. One more thing. If you notice the right chainstays of uprights, They're flattened near the dropout so the chain doesn't hit. When I put the bike together, the chain hit the rather thick fork tube when in high gear. I had to flatten it out from the dropout to about 4" toward the frame.

[GregLWB]

No. I never took pics of the build.

Thanks Kid - I think it will make more sense tommorrow when I can download the plans and read them over.

Greg

[Patrike]

Looking forward to seeing your madness come to light - it is a very simple design -- never built one but just looks simple and should be no prob with your experience on the TM. I'm taking a week off June 22 to build a deck. Rather be doing what your doing with vacation time.

About your Mom - she may be able to balance a reg bike but that recumbent position is going to play havac with her balance for a little while. Make sure she does some practice runs when she is picking up to make sure she is not going to hurt herself.

Good luck

[trikeman]

I have to second what Patrike said. The first time I rode my LWB I had someone run along beside me to make sure, and boy was I wobbly. Also be sure to tell her she has to start off in low gear or she probably won't be able to get going. It takes a while to get used to shifting all the way down before you stop too. Once she gets her recumbent legs she can probably start off in a higher gear. Have her watch Brad's video on the HighRoller and see how he places his feet for guidance on the start.

[GregLWB]

I have to second what Patrike said. The first time I rode my LWB I had someone run along beside me to make sure, and boy was I wobbly. Also be sure to tell her she has to start off in low gear or she probably won't be able to get going. It takes a while to get used to shifting all the way down before you stop too. Once she gets her recumbent legs she can probably start off in a higher gear. Have her watch Brad's video on the HighRoller and see how he places his feet for guidance on the start.

Thanks, both good suggestions Patrike and trikeman.

Both my mom and step-dad will be helping with the build, so there will be time to work on the riding style. I might try to adjust my HR to her X-seam and let her try riding that around the neighborhood while we are building. I would adjust the TM but I didn't build it to adjust down that far.

Greg

[TheKid]

About your Mom - she may be able to balance a reg bike but that recumbent position is going to play havac with her balance for a little while.

Yes, I forgot about that too. There was a ton of wheel flop when I built the Meridian, especially at slow speeds. I could barely keep it from falling. I reduced the trail to 1", but it was still a bit difficult to balance until I got used to it.

[mkane53]

Boy, you're a good Son! I put most of the main components of my meridian together over the course of a couple of days last year. It's got to be the easiest bike there is to build.

A couple of time-savers and observations.
When you get the plans you'll see that Brad recommends cutting down the size of the head tube, not because of function, but because a standard one looks just a bit large hanging out there in the wind. But that also requires you to shorten (ie. cut and re-weld the steering tube on the fork). That's pretty time consuming because the alignment is critical and the weld has to be absolutely dead-nuts on - it's the steerer tube on your MOM's bike for Chrissake - no second chances. That's a step you can certainly eliminate with no Ill-effect.

I added additional bracing on the weld at the front frame junction - that 45 Degree weld up-front. It's a very highly stressed area and you want it to hold together or ... well if it doesn't it's ungood. I brazed on an 1/8" diamond shaped plate overlapping the bottom of that joint to make sure it had additional support. See First Picture Below.

The other thing I found was that the steering support tube moved too much for my taste. After a hundred miles or so of riding my Meridian I added an additional triangulation tube for support and now it's solid as a rock. See Second photo below. I HIGHLY recommend adding the additional support the first time around because you want to make sure that it's secure. It's not like you can just pop over and re-weld it.

I'm including (at bottom of this post) a link to the photos of my Meridian Build last summer. It went lightning fast. And it was my FIRST Zombie bike so an experienced builder like yourself should be able to knock this off pretty quickly.

Re: Learning to ride. I've taught probably a dozen people to ride my Meridian. I just set them on a small slope to let them coast on it the first few times till they caught on to the balance and then had them start pedaling. I haven't had anyone take more than about 5 or 10 minutes to catch on and haven't lost one yet.

http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii54/mkane53/Phoenix%20Construction/21_Front_Underside_detail.jpg

Photo of Additional support under steering tube assembly.
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii54/mkane53/Phoenix%20Construction/22_Steering_Post_Additional_Support.jpg

Link to my Meridian build project
http://s261.photobucket.com/albums/ii54/mkane53/Phoenix%20Construction/?albumview=grid

[Patrike]

Re: Learning to ride. I've taught probably a dozen people to ride my Meridian. I just set them on a small slope to let them coast on it the first few times till they caught on to the balance and then had them start pedaling. I haven't had anyone take more than about 5 or 10 minutes to catch on and haven't lost one yet.

:jester: LOL -- that's it - put your mom on a hard to balance recumbent at the top of the biggest damn hill you can find, now stay with her til shes up ta speed, then let go :jester: I think I peed me kilt! Sounds like how my dad taught me to swim - just through me in lake from the end of the dock - All I remember hearing over the splashing was "shores the other why boy!!!"

[Patrike]

Boy, you're a good Son! I put most of the main components of my meridian together over the course of a couple of days last year. It's got to be the easiest bike there is to build.

Hey Mike

Looked over your photo - nice build -- looks like you upgraded the seat to a "recycled recumbent" style fabric -- I like to see how you intergrated that bad boy to that build -- cheers

[GregLWB]

Mike - That's exactly what I was looking for.:) I'm a visual learner so the pics are really appreciated and will help a lot.

Pat - LOL!:jester:

Greg

[mkane53]

LOL ... Yeah, well, I forgot to mention that you probably want to make sure that her life insurance is all paid up and that her favorite son is the appropriate beneficiary ...


:jester: LOL -- that's it - put your mom on a hard to balance recumbent at the top of the biggest damn hill you can find, now stay with her til shes up ta speed, then let go :jester: I think I peed me kilt! Sounds like how my dad taught me to swim - just through me in lake from the end of the dock - All I remember hearing over the splashing was "shores the other why boy!!!"

[mkane53]

Thanks Pat. The short answer is "Not very well yet." I'll send along a photo or two of what I've done. I actually think I liked the original seat - now on my new HighRoller - better than the Recycled Recumbent seat. But I'm still adjusting things.

Hey Mike

Looked over your photo - nice build -- looks like you upgraded the seat to a "recycled recumbent" style fabric -- I like to see how you intergrated that bad boy to that build -- cheers

[Patrike]

LOL ... Yeah, well, I forgot to mention that you probably want to make sure that her life insurance is all paid up and that her favorite son is the appropriate beneficiary ...


Now, I wasn't trying to give the boy any ideas like that Mike! Sheesh! :jester:

[GregLWB]

Hey guys,

Today between all the graduation prep I took my mom down to Corvallis to a bike shop that sells recumbents. There is a really wide bike/ped path next to the river and she was able to learn to ride. She had a chance to test ride an EZ-1 and a EZ-Sport.

I held the top corner of the seat and ran next to her for a little but she wasn't getting the balance right. Finally I decided to teach her the way I read about teaching kids to ride. I told her to put her feet on the ground and just push herself along like that until she felt she could balance. After about 4-5 minutes of that I told her to push along and then when she felt balanced and was moving to put her feet on the pedals and go. Almost right away she was riding and though a little wobbly on the EZ-1 she did okay.

We took the EZ-1 back and got the EZ-Sport. The Sport has a 26/20 wheel set up like the meridian but the typical tiller steer. She immediately took off riding and was much more stable with it's higher seating position. So now she is confident she will be able to ride the Meridian.

I'm downloading the plans tonight and we probably won't be able to start building till Monday, but I have everything together for it and found two more bikes today with Granny bars and one with a three speed internal hub. Also found a MB frame without wheels but with brake posts. Got all three for $15 total.:)

Greg

[Patrike]

She got the hang of it faster then I thought she would - I think this project will have to be renamed the Momridian!!!:jester:

[mkane53]

Momridian ... ha ha ha ha ... that's GREAT!

She got the hang of it faster then I thought she would - I think this project will have to be renamed the Momridian!!!:jester:


Greg -

It sounds like she caught right on. Excellent. I'll bet she's excited.

There really aren't any tricky parts with the meridian. You're going to need half of a relatively straight handlebar to make the stem-riser but it sounds like you've got plenty of parts, and frankly, in a pinch you can use 3/4" conduit, though it's not as solid.

Let me know if you have any questions. It really is about as easy a build as you can make, and a fine riding, sporty-looking bicycle.

Nice nab on the bikes too. I'm off to the monthly Chicago Police auction myself this morning. To see what I can find.

[Patrike]

Greg --take 5 and give a report please.